Once you've developed your full potential, it's time to work continuously toward achieving it regularly. Sail your own ocean, and you never know what you might find.

Ad

Steps

1

Determine what your full potential is. At its heart, achieving your full potential is about being the best person that you can be and is about expressing yourself to the fullest. Since everyone is a different person, however, full potential is a relative term and you'll view the concept in a different way from your best friend, your mentor and from other people in your life. As you continue to discover your own potential, consider these questions:

Is there something I have ever wanted to do/achieve/accomplish, such as dancing, singing, writing, or playing a sport?

Commit to achieve. Once you've confirmed that your goal is achievable and realistic, whether it be a set goal or a long-term thing, get to work. The most difficult part of beginning anything is, frankly, beginning. However, once you get past that first step, you'll be onto success! It is often said that if you do something consistently for 21 days it becomes a habit! So to start with you can focus on doing this 'new thing' 21 times at least!

Note that your goal doesn't have to be set in stone, word-for-word. Times will change, people will change, and therefore, your goals and aspects will change to fit more appropriately with what is happening. Determine the basic idea of what you're shooting for, then feel free to adjust as you go along. It's not an exact science, so you don't need to treat it like one. Allow yourself some room to grow.

Find your inspiration. It can be a person, a landmark, or your lucky charm. Whatever it is, keep it safe and close and let it inspire and motivate you to continue to achieve. It'll make you smile when you wake up in the morning, and it's the last thing you want to see before you fall asleep at night. Discover what or who it is and treasure it.

3

Take small steps. You don't go from crawling to running - you have to take your baby steps first. Once you gather the energy and mindset needed to take on your task, no matter how big or daunting, slow down and take a peek at eye level. Your goal(s) may be more or less onerous than you expected it to be as you get started, so adjust your pace and approach to whatever you're doing so that it fits you best.

That being said, once you get going, do challenge yourself. Maybe ten push-ups were hard before, but now it has turned into a simple routine, so bump it up to twenty. Perhaps a basic sketch of a bunny turned out to be a train wreck a week ago, but now you've got simple shapes down, so try free-drawing. Whenever you feel like something is getting too easy to do, take it up a notch. No matter how long it takes you to do so, you'll forever be one-upping your abilities and getting better and better.

One way to keep your morale high is to look at any setbacks as "failed trials." That didn't work, so try something else. When things go your way, take credit for your achievements. Always at least jot them down in your journal and remind yourself that you achieved something, whether it's losing two pounds or completing the first chapter of your novel. Most people do the opposite of this for some reason, blaming themselves for all setbacks but calling achievements "dumb luck" or crediting someone else for it. The mental habit of crediting yourself for achievements and treating setbacks as failed trials is one that will build confidence faster and deeper. Success is self reinforcing unless you don't pay attention to it.

4

Accept pain as life sustaining. Setbacks and failures will happen; they're a natural part of life. Failures are a simple way of showing you what works and what doesn't; they will help you figure out what you're capable of, and what needs work as you move toward achieving your goal(s). Life is trial and error, and as you make mistakes, you'll emerge and move on a stronger person.

5

Find your confidence. Everyone has it inside themselves, no matter how deeply buried. Confidence can also mean very different things depending on the person and their goal(s). If your goal is to learn to juggle five balls at a time, your confidence might be getting them up in the air in the first place. If your goal is to be an overall better person, your confidence might be to give people compliments on a regular basis.

Keep in mind that there is a fine line between confidence and cockiness. Confidence is being great, while cockiness involves putting other people down. Try to be humble in your efforts to accomplishing your goals and achieving the person you want to be. It will not only gain the respect of others, but you will actually feel better, too. Real humility and real pride both boil down to being self honest and not using your successes to hold back others.

6

Get support. Whether you are dealing with addiction, obsession, or any crisis, it helps to have external support. This could mean friends, family, coworkers, or buddies at the gym, depending on your goals and environment.

You don't have to outright announce your goal to be a better person or to make such changes as losing weight, but having the people around you get a general idea of what you're going for can get you the support system and encouragement you need to get going.

7

Develop intuition. Intuition comes from experience and instinct. Some people tend to follow their intuition, while many like to "jump the gun", or go with their gut instinct. Strike a balance between these two. In one study, two groups of people were asked to pick out a poster to take home. One group was asked to analyze their decision carefully, weighing the pros and cons, and the other group was told to listen to their gut. Two weeks later, the group that followed their gut was happier with their posters than the group that analyzed their decisions.[1]

Know when it is appropriate to follow your instinct. In the case of choosing a poster or a shirt, it's often best. However, in more serious cases like "Should I take this medication to do this?" or "Should I quit my job to take classes here?", you may want to contemplate. In short, decisions that will affect you and your life in the long run should be analyzed. Small decisions should be immediately decided upon. You'll feel better and much happier.

Ad

We could really use your help!

Can you tell us aboutproductivity?

Yes

No

productivity

how to increase your productivity

Can you tell us aboutmaking money through chores?

Yes

No

making money through chores

how to make money through chores

Can you tell us aboutseizing opportunities?

Yes

No

seizing opportunities

how to YOLO

Can you tell us aboutsinus infections?

Yes

No

sinus infections

how to feel better when you have a sinus infection

Thanks for helping! Please tell us everything you know about

...

Tell us everything you know here. Remember, more detail is better.

Tips

Provide Details.

Please be as detailed as possible in your explanation. Don't worry about formatting! We'll take care of it.
For example:Don't say: Eat more fats.Do say: Add fats with some nutritional value to the foods you already eat. Try olive oil, butter, avocado, and mayonnaise.

Video

Howcast video on how to achieve your full potential.

Tips

Keep time in mind. Sometimes, everyone needs the simple reminder that life doesn't last forever, and that the time we do have is a gift that could be snatched away at any moment. That being said, don't feel like death is knocking at your door. Don't let that idea slow you down. Take advantage of life as you have it, and get going on being the best you can be now.

Know the difference between developing your full potential and achieving it: You'll develop full potential as you find out what it is and how to go about working toward it. Achieving it is doing your best to get as close as you can to the potential you envision.

Accept that changes, big and small, may come along in your efforts to achieve what you're looking for. Be ready to take them on.

Love yourself. Don't expect people to respect and accept you if you can't respect and accept yourself!

Remember that this is a simple guide. You'll have to twist and tweak this to fit your specific goals in mind. As mentioned before, everyone's full potential is variable, so find yours and work toward it in the best way that you can.

Smile and be positive. It's a phrase that's used way too much, but that's because it's true. Smile at a stranger on the street just once, and your mood will lift. Whether you're on your way to the court or the office, keeping a generally kind and accepting attitude will be inspiring to you and everyone around you.